Namibia heads to Texas for World Champs

Precision rifle shooting
Tina Victor
  • 1 Hour Ago

Namibia has sent six precision rifle shooters to Texas, United States (US), for the third International Precision Rifle Federation (IPRF) Centerfire World Championship from 24 to 27 September.

Francois Marais, Liebies Liebenberg, Janus van der Merwe, Keiran Mans, Dirk Sauber and Michael Barlow will compete at the Gravestone Precision Shooting Range.

The championship brings together 282 competitors from 24 nations, who are expected to fire about 200 rounds across 20 stages.

Shooters will be tested over distances of up to 925 yards (845.8 metres), while also having to contend with challenging range conditions.

Temperatures are expected to reach highs of around 30°C and lows of about 18°C, with strong, changing winds and a dry, dusty range adding another layer of difficulty.

Namibia heads into the championship with recent world-level success behind it.

At the 2024 IPRF World Championships in Grand Junction, Colorado, the six-member Namibian Precision Rifle Association (NAPRA) team won a historic silver medal in the Open Division.

They scored 636 points to finish behind the US, which won gold with 680, while Australia completed the podium with 624.

Namibia also finished ahead of established precision shooting nations such as Norway, Great Britain, New Zealand, Sweden, South Africa, Ireland and Canada.


Valuable techniques

Sport Wrap caught up with Marais on Wednesday before his flight to Frankfurt, where the team was due to connect en route to Texas.

He said their experience at the 2024 championship exposed the Namibians to techniques and equipment used by some of the world’s leading shooters.

“Our experience in the US in 2024 was very valuable in that it gave us very good insight into the equipment and techniques that top shooters from all around the world employ,” he said.

“This has allowed us to incorporate what we felt was most suitable for us into our shooting. In this way, we have refined the way in which we approach different stages and have raised our hit percentages in matches considerably.”

Adapting to the Texas environment could be one of Namibia’s biggest challenges, with much of the team’s preparation having taken place around Windhoek and Okahandja.

By comparison, defending champions the US have spent 18 months going through a detailed selection process that required shooters to compete across different regions and conditions.

“While we all take our shooting very seriously and want to be as prepared as possible, the reality is still that we do this for a hobby rather than a job,” Mans said.

Mans is ranked second in Namibia’s Category O shooter rankings and first in the Category O match rankings.

“This has led to all of us not spending quite as much time in training and preparation as we would have liked. Despite this, our overall level of shooting has still improved from what we were capable of two years ago,” he added.


African representation

Namibia is one of only two African teams competing at this year’s championship alongside South Africa.

While the two countries are fierce rivals at regional competitions, Mans said that dynamic changes when they compete outside the continent.

“The attitude changes to one of support more than anything else, since we Africans have to stand together,” he said.

The championship will run over four competition days, with each team shooting on two days and having a rest day between its shooting days.

NAPRA’s Karola Marais said the Precision Rifle Series competition in the Western Cape, South Africa, earlier this year also gave her husband Francois valuable competition time ahead of the World Championship.

“Francois is 100% prepared and had extra trigger time at the PRS championship in the Western Cape at the beginning of the year, which he won,” she said.

“The team has prepared to the best of their abilities with the available funding. We are thankful for the private companies that have contributed to the travel expenses.”

– tina@nma.com.na